Eastern Gama Grass

[letemgrow]

This is a great NWSG that gets pushed aside and most people do not know anything about the grass. It is a relative of corn with tremendous forage potential for cattle. Some stands can be chest to head high in high quality soils. I am in the process of collecting wild seeds from very vigorous plants in Northern MO to keep the genetic diversity alive. The only commercial sources for Eastern Gama are collections for Oklahoma and Kansas or farther south than that. I have pheasant hunted in gama grass and it makes great habitat for lots of wildlife. It grows in clumps as with other NWGS's and the seeds start to mature in July and are almost as big as corn and just as hard. The grass can be planted with a corn row planter and requires winter to break dormancy or some type of synthetic stratification. Here are some pics of this oft over looked gem. One plant can live up to 70 years.

Look how much better it grows on poor soils than the cool season grasses around it.

This plant is 2 years old on my farm and already starting to produce seeds.

Very vigorous gama that was chest high.

 

[dbltree]

At one time I was very interested in Eastern Gamagrass and visited a great deal with Sheperd Farms in central Missouri about planting it.

He said deer love the stuff as well but in the end I didn't feel I had soils upon which EG would do well and it generally doesn't provide much winter cover.

Very interesting warm season grass however and one that any landowner might consider.

Check out the link below for more info and thanks for sharing the pics Phil!:way:

Shepherd Farms

 

[letemgrow]

When I pheasant hunted in that grass it was some phenominal hunting. Very hard to walk through for sure since it put on so much growth that laid over and was still waist high. At ground level though there was bare ground galore.

I agree though, it is a grass to consider for sure!! Shepherd farms sells the "Pete" variety that was original collections of Kansas and Oklahoma. I am collecting native plants from Northern MO to maybe start my own variety someday or at the very least, preserve the genes from my area.

 

[letemgrow]

FYI for anyone interested in collecting some gama, it is starting to mature in my area of Northern MO, close to the IA line.